4 killed, 4 injured in rebel group fighting in S.Philippines

Source:Xinhua Published: 2013-10-23 17:00:52

Four members of the Philippine rebel group Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) were killed and four others were injured when two MILF groups fought each other in the southern province of Maguindanao on Wednesday, the military said.

The fighting, triggered by clan war, was conducted between the group of Commanders Buto and Bigkong of the MILF's 108th Base Command on the one hand, and the MILF National Guard led by Mukamad Andoy on the other hand, said Antonio Bulao, civil military operations officer of the Army's 602nd Brigade.

The group of commanders Buto and Bigkong incurred four fatalities in the 35-minute firefight.

At around 9 a.m. local time, commanders Buto and Bigkong again attacked the group of Andoy, primarily to recover the bodies of their four men who died in the earlier clash. Four of Andoy's men were reportedly wounded in the second fighting, Bulao said.

Clan wars are common in gun-awash tribal communities in southern Philippines, where leftist and Islamic insurgencies are also active.